


Partners in Crime

by ValeskaDoll



Category: Gotham (TV)
Genre: Arkham Asylum, Escape, Explicit Language, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Falling In Love, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Romance, Sex, Sexual Content
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-20
Updated: 2016-03-21
Packaged: 2018-05-27 23:02:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 9,151
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6303607
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ValeskaDoll/pseuds/ValeskaDoll
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Lily is a new inmate at Arkham Asylum. At first, she doesn't say a word. But after some persuasion, Jerome gets her to talk. They build a friendship and Lily shares her escape plan with Jerome.<br/>Will they make it?<br/>Jerome Valeska X OC</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The New Girl

Jerome walked into the day room, another boring day ahead of him no doubt. But as he walked to his usual table, he noticed a figure sat on the floor, looking out the window. He rattled his brain a little and didn't recall seeing her the day before, there was talk of a possible new inmate. Perhaps it was she? He decided to introduce himself.

He walked over to the window and leant against the wall, looking down at the girl. She had dark hair, making her skin look pale. She wore the usual striped uniform and was gazing out at the buildings. “Hi gorgeous, I'm Jerome.” he smiled.

No reply.

“Hey?”

Still no reply.

He shrugged, few people talked in here, rarely on their first day. They usually kept themselves to themselves for the first few weeks. After than some talked, some stayed silent. He was hoping she would talk, he was bored of the usual faces. A new face was refreshing, but she seemed to be one of the silent ones.

He sat down next to her cross legged and followed her gaze. “Not much of a view, but it's better than staring at the same four walls.” he turned his head to look at her. “You got a name?”

She didn't even seem to notice him, she hadn't moved at all.

Maybe she really was mental, he thought. “Well, I'd love to stay and chat doll, but I got things to do,” he stood up, “See ya around.” he made his way to the table on the other side of the room, he sat with a few others who were talking. Now and again he would flash a look her way to see if she had moved.

She hadn't.

He would try again tomorrow.

 

 

The next morning was the same as the last, the cell doors opened and the lights switched on, blinding those who were still half asleep. They were then all escorted into the day room.

She was there again, same place, sat in front of the window.

Jerome sat at his usual table with the others and nibbled on some food.

The others were talking about something or other, Jerome couldn't care less. He was still fixated on the dark haired girl. It looked as if she hadn't moved at all since the morning before. The guards didn't seem to care. Mind you, they didn't seem to care about anyone, not even their fellow guards. They just did their job and left.

After finishing up his food, he picked up some toast and spread some butter onto it. He walked over to her, plate in hand. “Have you eaten?”

No reply.

He placed the plate down next to her gently. “You should.” he waited a few seconds for a reply, but doubted he would get one. He turned and walked away back to the table and watched her.

“What's with her?” Barbara asked as Jerome took a seat next to her.

“No idea. She doesn't talk.”

“Don't blame her.” Barbara smirked. “We are hardly a riveting bunch.”

Jerome continued to watch her, there was something about her that captures his curiosity. He would get her to talk.

 

 

The afternoon was the usual bore, Jerome decided to take a stroll around the cells.

After a few corridors, he came across a cell that wasn't open before. He poked his head inside and realized it belonged to a female. The smell was familiar, it was the new girl's. He stepped inside, maybe there was a clue to who she was. It looked just like the rest of the cells, apart from one thing. As he turned to leave, he noticed something behind the cabinet. He moved it and saw something on the wall. He knelt down to take a closer look, it was a drawing, a good one as well. He ran his fingers over it, it was scratched in with rock. Of course, she had to hide it. If the guards saw someone had altered their cell, even changed the sheets without permission, there would be trouble. Jerome smiled as an idea flashed across his mind. He pushed the cabinet back against the wall and right a little, to hide the drawing a bit better than she had. He walked back to the day room.

 

 

She shuffled back to her cell that evening, her mind still elsewhere. She remembered someone talking to her, a man's voice. He was the one who left the toast. She didn't feel like talking, she didn't want to make friends. She also didn't plan to stay in this godforsaken building for too long either.

She slipped inside her cell door and noticed something on her bed. She picked it up, it was a pad of white paper, a pencil and a rubber. There was a note on the bottom of it.

“Saw your drawing, you're good doll. Thought you might make good use of these. J.”

J? Was it the man who spoke to her?

Whoever it was who gave her this gift, it made her smile a little.


	2. The Drawing

Jerome entered the day room. His eyes immediately went to the window.

She wasn't there.

He looked around and saw her sitting behind the table he usually sat at, behind his seat. She was on the floor, her back pressed up against the cold wall. When he walked forward, he saw she was looking down at something. After a few more steps, he discovered what she was looking at. The paper he had left for her was on her lap, she was using her drawn up legs as a surface for the paper. One of the pencils was in her hand as she sketched something, the other was behind her ear. 

He walked over to her with a smile. “Hey doll, I see you got my present.” 

No reply. 

“I'm glad you like it.” he knew she wouldn't talk, so he sat down at the table, his back facing her. 

After half an hour or so, breakfast was served. The usual cold toast. After eating a slice he looked down at the other piece on his plate. He looked over his shoulder, the girl was still sitting on the floor drawing. He picked up the slice of toast and handed it to her as he turned back to face the guards. To his surprise, it was taken from his hand. He shot his head round and saw she had taken it. The pencil in one hand, still drawing, but she was munching on the toast she held in the other hand. Well, this was something, right? He half smiled, he was happy she had taken it and was eating. She looked like she hadn't eaten in a while.

 

The next few days played out the same. Every day the girl was in the same place on the floor, always behind Jerome. He felt like he was becoming a bodyguard of some kind, he didn't mind. Every morning he would eat a piece of toast, then hand her the other one. She would never say a word, but would always take it and munch on it, whilst still working with her paper and pencil. Now and again, he would glance at her over his shoulder. He wasn't sure why he did this, to make sure she was okay? To make sure she was still there? Whatever the reason, it had turned into a habit. But every time he looked, he was met with the same sight. He noticed she had worked the first pencil nearly down to the end. Now and again, she would have to switch to the second one she kept behind her ear. On a rare occasion, he would watch her as she took the paper she had drawn on and folded it up with care, then placed it into the side of her bra. She had peaked his curiosity even more now. Not just because she didn't talk, but he couldn't help but wonder what she was drawing. Whatever it was, she seemed secretive about it. Whenever someone would walk past, or even near her, she would pause and pull the paper flush against her chest. One they had walked away, she would continue. But she never once looked up or away from the paper, not even to take the food.

 

 

Jerome yawned and walked into his cell. He had only been in here a few months, but the boredom started on day one. He was becoming restless but there wasn't much to do, apart from use the gym or walk around the building. Talking to others gave him a little entertainment. It was just people's stories about their lives before they came to Arkham, or what their crime was. He had no interest in this. 

He picked up a towel and made his way to the shower block. He walked into the room and to the changing area. He kicked off his shoes, lifted his shirt off and threw it to the floor, followed by the rest of his clothes. He wrapped a towel around his waist and entered the shower cubicle. The water took a while to warm up. He thought he would be use to the cold showers by now, but it always made him jump when the water hit his skin. 

As he rinsed the foamy water from his hair, he caught himself thinking about the mysterious girl. She had been here at least a week now. She hadn't spoken a single word, no facial emotion either. None of the other inmates seemed interested in her. One of them had approached her once and seemed to be bothering her. Jerome found himself standing between the other inmate and the girl, almost instinctively. He had no idea why he had done so, he knew that certain inmate's track record with women and what he liked to do to them. But he was never one for protecting others, he looked after number one. That was it. He shook the thoughts from his head and dried himself with the towel, it was hardly soft nor absorbent. 

He arrived back at his cell and hung the towel up to dry, he placed his shoes next to his bed. He turned his head to the bed and saw a piece of paper on the mattress. He picked it up and turned it over, his eyes widened a little along with his mouth. 

It was a drawing of him, sat at the table. 

He had to admit, it was pretty good. Better than the drawing he had seen her do on the wall. If it wasn't for it being in pencil, it could pass as a photograph. The girl has talent. This made him wonder what else she had drawn.


	3. Talking To Her

She was sitting with her back against the wall as usual the next morning. Jerome followed the usual sequence of events. He sat in front of her, back towards her. After eating one piece of toast, he gave the other to her. She took it and munched on it.

After she had finished, Jerome turned on the seat to face her and paused, he decided to try to talk to her again.

He stood up and took a few steps towards her.

She didn't seem to hide the drawing from him when he approached.

He sat down next to her. "Morning doll."

No reply.

He took the folded drawing from his pocket and unfolded it. "You've got quite a talent there."

She paused with her drawing. Her eyes looked over at the drawing the ginger held in his hand.

"So, your name begins with an L eh?" she had signed it with an L at the bottom of the page, like he had done with his note. "Let's play a game. If I guess your name, you gotta talk to me."

She looked up into his eyes and nodded a little, then returned to her drawing.

"Okay then," he looked down at the L on the paper and ran a few names through his mind, "Hmm, what would suit you..." he looked at her. "Laura?"

She continued drawing.

He took that as a no. "Okay then, Lacy?"

No reply.

"Louise?"

No reply.

"Lucy?"

No reply.

"Lauren?"

No reply.

"Lillian."

She paused drawing, a few seconds passed. "Lily."

Jerome smiled, it was exhilarating to finally hear this mysterious girl's voice. It was so soft and sweet. "Lily," he grinned. "Of course."

She continued her drawing. "You're Jerome, right?"

"That the name doll." he nodded.

Silence fell between them for a few minutes. Jerome couldn't work out if it was awkward or not, but knowing she wasn't one for talking, he decided it wasn't.

"Thank you for the gifts." her voice was so quiet.

Jerome could only just hear it over the other conversations in the room. "You're more than welcome." he looked around the room, scanning and taking count as to who was in there. "I saw your drawing, behind your cabinet. I thought you'd appreciate it."

"I do."

The ginger moved a little closer to her. He looked over at her drawing in her lap. "What are you drawing?" his eyes lit up along with a small smile when he saw what she was drawing. It was a picture of two guards, dead on the floor. They were brutality murdered. "Yeah, that's crossed my mind a few times as well." he muttered, trying to hold in a chuckle.

"Fancy doing it some time?"

He let out the chuckle. "I'd like to try doll, but I plan to get out of here as soon as I can. I think if I did that, I would be looking at a few more years."

"Not necessarily."

Jerome looked up at her face, it had a small smile on one corner, her eyes caught his. The same spark that was in his eyes were also in hers. He mirrored her smile and opened his mouth to talk.

"C'mon, you worthless lot! Roll call!"

Everyone in the day room took their remembered positions in a line across the room.

"What's going on?" Lily asked.

"Roll call, now and again the guards like to line us up and give us a check over. Make sure we are all here, search our cells..." he waved the rest of the sentence off. "Come on." he stood and held his hand out.

Lily placed the paper and pencil on the floor and took his hand.

He walked her to the end of the line and stood her next to him as the guards began pacing along the line, clipboard in hand.

"Aaron Helzinger," the guard stopped in front of the first man in the line, "Killed his entire family with his bare hands." he read aloud from the clipboard. After looking him up and down, he moved onto the next. "Robert Greenwood," he stopped in front of the second man, "Killed women and ate them."

Robert smiled menacingly, "Over a dozen."

"Uh-huh." the guard seemed unimpressed and wrote something down on the clipboard. After looking him up and down he moved on. "Barbara Kean."

"Hurry it up moron!" she snapped.

The guard looked down at his clipboard, "Killer her parents. Huh, original." he smirked sarcastically. He looked her up and down and moved along the line. "Za-"

"I am Zaardon!" the man cried.

"Yea, yea," the guard sighed. "We know, the mighty Zaardon yada yada..." he wrote on the clipboard. He reached Jerome. "Jerome Valeska, killed his mother."

Jerome smiled. "Yes, sir!" he mimicked an army salute.

The guard ignored this and after looking him up and down, he scribbled something down and stood in front of Lily. "And finally the newest inmate, Lily Croft." he looked down at the clipboard. "Kidnapped an individual. Torchered him within inches of life, nursed him back to life then did it again."

Jerome lifted an intrigued eyebrow at this information as he looked at Lily.

She was expressionless.

"Now, that's original." he laughed. "Settling in okay?"

She nodded. "Yes, sir." she smiled sweetly.

He nodded. "Good, good," he wrote something down and walked back up the line. "You are dismissed." he called as he walked out of the room.

The others went back to what they were doing, including Lily.

Jerome followed her and sat next to her. "So, torcher eh?"

She sat on the floor and picked up the paper.

He sat next to her. "I will tell you my story, it you tell me yours?" he wiggled his eyebrows and nudged her with his shoulder.

"Someone did something bad to me. I set the record straight." she spoke as if it was nothing.

"But nursed them back to health and did it again? Geez doll they must've done something pretty bad."

She didn't reply.

He leant his head against the wall and looked up at the ceiling. "I killed my mother. If you could call her that, she was more interested in other men than her own son." he closed his eyes, seemingly revisiting the scene. "I covered it up pretty well. It's easy to play innocent, when you know what makes people tick."

"How comes you ended up in here then?"

He opened his eyes and turned his head to her, still leant back on the wall. "There is no point in doing something if you're gonna keep quiet about it, right?"

"I guess." she shrugged.

He turned his head back to the ceiling and closed his eyes. "I thought I hid her quite well, but someone found her. Luckily we are all like family at the circus, the ringleader found her and decided to hide her a little better. The last thing we needed was cops sniffing around us. We wanted to do our thing and leave. When the police came looking for her, I had to put on the worried act," he smirked, "One of my favorite acts. Mr. innocent. I must admit, I was quite proud of the show I put on when they found the body. They took me in for questioning. That's when I let it slip."

"Why didn't you just admit to it when they found the body? Why take so long?"

"I'm a performer doll," he looked at her with a wink, "I like to put on a show."

She smiled a little as she continued drawing. "It would look better with color, don't you think?"

Jerome looked down at the paper. "Yea...hey, I could try to get you some colored pencils if you like?"

Lily looked at him, the slight smile still on her face. "That would be nice."

"If you tell me your story." he smiled.

Her face changed, she looked back at her drawing.

"Aww, come on doll, don't be a bore."

"I don't want to talk about it." she mumbled.

"Oh, go on, I love a good story."

"No." she said firmly.

"But I gave you my toast, don't I deserve a thank you?"

No reply.

"Ahh, you're no fun. What's the point in doing a crime, if you don't boast about it?"

"I don't want to boast about it."

"Let me guess. You don't wanna talk about it because you didn't get away with it?"

No reply.

"Tell me, did you plan to get caught? Or did you mess up?" he teased.

No reply.

"I'm guessing you messed up." he laughed. "It's okay. I know people can be overpowering, sometimes."

There was a small snap.

Jerome glanced over to see Lily had pushed her pencil down hard. The tip had snapped against the paper. His eyes moved up to her face to see she had clenched her jaw. Her eyes wide with rage.

"You're like a coiled spring, gorgeous," he smirked, "Come on, tell uncle Jerome all about it." he reached for her leg.

"No!" she cried. She pushed him away harshly. Within seconds, she was on her feet and heading to the door.

Jerome sat on the floor, a little dazed. What the hell was her problem?


	4. A Secret

The next day, Jerome walked into the day room and looked over to where Lily usually sat. 

She wasn't there.

The paper and the pencil with the snapped tip was still where she had left them the day before. Maybe she decided to sleep in. 

It felt strange to him. After eating his toast, he instinctively turned to pass the other piece behind him. But after looking he remembered she wasn't there. “Have any of you seen Lily this morning?”

The others at his table shook their heads.

He looked behind him again. It was weird without her there. Did he upset her that much?

After breakfast, he walked to her cell. Maybe she was there.

He approached her cell and poked his head in, it was empty. He stepped inside and looked around, he wasn't sure what for. Everything looked normal, where was she? 

He searched the building for a while, but still couldn't find her, this puzzled him. She couldn't have just disappeared. He began to head back to the day room, hoping she would come in for dinner. 

She didn't.

 

 

Again, she wasn't at breakfast. He was beginning to worry. Wait, why was he worrying about a girl he only met a few weeks ago? He didn't care about her! Did he?

After the usual breakfast, he took a shower. 

He rubbed his hair dry with the towel as he walked back to his cell. He threw the towel on the bed, picked up a fresh shirt and unbuttoned it in his hands.

“It was my ex.”

He stopped at the sound of a soft voice behind him. 

“I...we were together...for a few years...” he voice was quieter than usual, shaking. 

Jerome continued to unbutton the shirt slowly, keeping his bare back facing her. 

“He didn't treat me right. I tried to split up with him a few times, but he wouldn't listen. Then one day I...I ran away, I went to the GCPD. I told them everything. But...he was a police officer. He had a lot of friends there.”

Jerome pulled a white shirt over his head and continued to listen. 

“It went to court, it was messy. Of course...he was acquitted. It was stupid of me to even fantasize about him going to prison. It was never going to happen, it was always going to be nothing more than a fantasy.” 

He lifted his foot onto the bed and slipped it into one shoe, tying it up.

“A few months passed. I was able to get a small place of my own, a job as a hair dresser. I was trying to move on with my life, keeping myself to myself.”

He switched feet, putting the other shoe on.

“I was walking home one night, it gets dark so quickly in winter. There was a shortcut I took home, an alleyway...” she paused and took an unsteady breath, “He...he had followed me...he had done for a few days. When I was well into the dark alleyway he...” she swallowed back the tears, “He grabbed me and...and...”

He put his foot back onto the ground, slipped his arms into the second shirt and began buttoning it up from the bottom. 

“He told me he would make me pay, not only for leaving him, but for going to the police. He told me he couldn't believe how stupid I was, how I thought he would be prosecuted. How I must have been insane to think it would ever work. He said I was even more stupid than he thought I was. He started laughed at me and had that look in his eyes, the look when he...when he was angry...” another pause.

Jerome slowed doing his buttons up. 

“He raped me...” she choked. “In that alleyway. When he finished, he left me on the floor. Like a worthless piece of trash.” 

Jerome heard the tears begin to fall. He turned to face her, his heart sank a little more when he saw her. She look like she hadn't slept in days, or washed. She looked a mess. A beautiful mess. He walked towards her with caution.

She was looking at the ground. Her hands tucked into her long sleeves, they were covering her mouth, trying to cover the sobbing sounds. 

Jerome pulled her into him and wrapped his strong arms around her. 

Then she let the tears flow onto his chest. She moved her hands from her mouth and gripped onto his back, as tight as she could.

Jerome had to hold her up a little, he felt her knees buckle a bit. He held her and let her cry. He reached his hand out to the door and pushed it shut, then returned his hand to her hair, stroking it and placing a kiss on it now and again. “You should have killed him.”

Lily sniffed, “I tried...but...I was...I was so angry Jerome...I want him...I wanted him to suffer...as much...as much as I had...but...but...I couldn't...”

Jerome took a finger and lifted her chin up so their eyes met. “What's his name.”

“It...it doesn't matter...”

“Yes, it does.”

“W-why?”

“Because Lilly,” he moved his hand from her chin and stroked her cheek, “When we get out of here, I'm going to show you how to do it properly.”

Lily smiled a little, “Thanks, but...I doubt I will be able to do it again.”

“That's where I come in.” he tilted his head to the side. “I always like the idea of helping someone with a crime. Could be fun. I'm a good teacher.” he winked. 

Lily looked at the floor. “I guess...”

Jerome moved her to the bed and took the towel he had discarded earlier. He handed it to her.

“Thanks.” she murmured as she took it. She wiped her face and took a few deep breaths. 

Whilst she did this, Jerome leant down and retrieved her paper and pencil from under his bed. He handed them to her. “I got you a new pencil.”

She took them, “Thanks.”

“Oh!” he jumped up and opened a draw in the cabinet. He pulled something out and hid it behind his back. “Close your eyes!” he said with a big smile.

“Why?”

He sighed and rolled his eyes, “Humor me doll! C'mon, close them!”

She closed her eyes.

“Hold out your hands.”

She felt something placed in them.

“Now open!” he beamed.

Lily opened her eyes and looked down into her hands, she smiled. “Coloring pencils!” she looked up at Jerome. “How did you-”

“I can get anything I like.”

Lily's face changed. “Anything?” she asked with interest in her voice.

“Yep!” he noticed this, “Whyyyyy?” he sang. “Is there something else you need?”

“Well...” she looked down at the pencils. “Maybe...”

The ginger sat next to her on the bed. “Ask away.”

Lily looked up at him, somewhat hesitant to reply. “If I tell you, will you promise to keep it a secret?”

He took a finger and drew a cross on his heart with a nod.

“I need...a torch.”

“A torch?”

“And a screwdriver, maybe a knife.”

Jerome lifted an eyebrow. “Sounds like someone is planning something.”

Her eyes moved to the floor. “I, erm...”

Jerome moved closer, his arm pressed against hers. “Has this got something to do with the drawing you did, with the dead guards?”

“I've said too much, forget about it.” she stood and walked to the door.

Jerome grabbed her and flipped her round, slamming her against the wall. He pinned her hands up on the wall and pressed his body against her. “Ah ah ah, you can't just leave me hanging like that doll,” he smirked, “Now tell me, what's this little plan?”

Lily bit her lip. She lowered her voice. “I'm going to escape.”

“Esca- how?” he asked in surprise.

“My cousin was a builder. He worked on a building like this a few years back. He kept the blueprints to work on. When I moved to Gotham, I noticed this building looked a lot like the one he worked on. I was thinking of going into architecture and I was always interested in the blueprints. My cousin let me make a copy of a few of the blueprints he worked with. I had a whole folder full.”

“So you know the layout?”

“Kind of, some bits are a little different. But it's near enough the same. I have sketched out what I remember and I keep it under my mattress.”

He let her hands go and moved back a little. “Show me.” he ordered


	5. Their Plan

They walked to her cell. After they were inside, Lily shut the door and walked over to her mattress. She lifted it up and picked up a few pieces of paper. She lay them out on the wooden cabinet and Jerome stood behind her. She pointed to one of the sketches. “This is what I remember from the blueprints. There is an air duct in the corridor to the left wing.”

“I know it, it's on the way to the day room.”

Lily nodded, “Right. If I can get a screwdriver and something to stand on, I can undo a screw each time I walk past, until there is one left. The guards don't patrol that much in the evening. So that would be the best time for me to undo the last screw and climb inside. The vents can be attached from both outside and the inside. So once I'm in, I can do the screws back up and it won't look any different.” she pointed to the next sketch. “The vents are quite sturdy, but echo. So when I crawl, I will have to be as quiet as I can. You go down this one, then take a right and follow it along. Once I'm here,” she pointed at another sketch, “Then I can undo the screws on this vent and jump down. The room will be near the boiler room, hardly anyone goes down there. I will sneak past the room, then there will be a small window. As no inmates go down there, there won't be any bars on the windows, just glass. So I can open that and climb out.” she placed the last piece of paper on top of the others. “Because the boiler room is on the lowest level, the window will open onto the waterside. I can sneak underneath the bridge to Gotham then...well...I'm not sure what comes after that just yet.” she turned her head to the side to look up at Jerome. “What do you think?”

He took a step forward, his chest pressed against her back. He picked up one of the pieces of paper and looked at it a little longer. “Sounds like a plan.” he murmured. “But, what's the knife for?”

“In case we see any guards of course.”

Jerome smiled as he looked at the sketch. “Of course.” 

Lily looked at the paper in his hand. “Would you...like to come?”

Jerome looked down at her.

She noticed this, “Well, now I've told you...I can't leave you here. What if you tell?”

He smirked, “I don't squeal doll,” he put the paper down, “But now you've asked, it would be impolite for me to decline.”

Lily smiled.

“I may be able to help with the last bit of the plan. I know a guy who could put a roof over our heads until we know what we are gonna do. It's not much, but it's something.”

“Can we trust him?”

Jerome snorted. “He is an old friend. Plus he knows I would kill him without a second thought.”

“That's a yes then.”

“I will get the things you need. I should have them by tomorrow.”

 

 

Jerome walked into the corridor and arrived at the vent. He pulled the screwdriver from his trousers and after a last look around, he began to unscrew a single screw. Once he had done so, he shoved it with the screwdriver back in his pocket. A guard appeared from around the corner, Jerome clocked this and walked away. He will have to undo the rest later on.

He was surprised to see Lily sat at the table, rather than on the floor behind it. He walked over and took a seat next to her, she was drawing as usual. “Good morning.” he smiled.

“Good morning.” she replied.

“And what are we drawing today?”Jerome moved closer to her. His legs pressed against hers as he looked down at the paper. It was a drawing of a small apartment.

“I've always wanted a little place of my own. Somewhere to call a permanent home.”

Jerome nodded, “It could happen.”

“Ha! Without money, I doubt it.”

Jerome took another quick look around before his eyes fell back on the drawing, his voice a little lower. “I have put the items you want under your mattress, where you keep the blueprints. The knife I managed to get isn't the sharpest, but it will do.”

Lily nodded. “Okay,” she too took a quick look around, “When do you think is the best time?”

“To undo the vent? I can do that now and again when I walk past. As for the escape itself,” he smiled a little, “How about tonight?”

“Tonight?” she remembered to lower her voice a little. “That soon?”

“Why not?” he shrugged. 

Lily thought for a moment. “Alright.”

“I also managed to grab another pillow. Just before it's lights out, we will go back to our cells and put them under the bed covers. It will look like we are in there, already asleep.”

“But, how will we sneak out?”

“We will stay low and hide in the shower cubicles. They are closer to the vent than our cells are. They don't check them before lights out, just the day room and the cells.”

“Right.” 

“Meet me in the women's showers at 7pm.”


	6. The Escape

Lily pushed the pillows under her cover, she poked them around until they looked like it was a figure asleep. She looked at it for a while and poked them around a bit more. Once she was happy, she grabbed the torch and small pocket knife Jerome had hidden under her mattress and pushed them into her pockets. With one final look around, she walked to the women's showers.

She entered and looked around for Jerome. She couldn't see him. "Jerome?" she whispered. She took a step forward and felt a hand on her waist. It made her jump a little, she turned to see Jerome. "Jesus you scared me!"

"Shh," he placed a finger over her lips. "Scaredy cat." he winked.

She rolled her eyes and moved his finger out of the way. "What do we do now?"

Jerome smiled and took her hand, he led her to a locker in the room and opened it. Once he had moved inside of it, he motioned her to stand with him.

"There's not enough space."

"There is, it will just be tight. I've done it before."

Lily took his word for it and slid into the locker next to him.

Jerome reached for the door and pulled it shut as quietly as he could. He shuffled a little so their chests were pressed against each other. "I hope you're not claustrophobic."

She saw he had a slight smile on his face.

"So do I."

"You mean, you don't know?" he sounded surprised.

"Well, I've never had to hide in a small space before." she replied in a sarcastic tone.

"How do you like it so far?"

"It's...tight."

Jerome smirked under his breath. "I think it's quite cozey, if you ask me."

She sighed, "How long will we have to stay like this?"

"About two hours."

"Two-"

Jerome shoved his hand over her mouth. "Hey, keep it quiet doll." he moved his hand away. "Don't worry, you have me to keep you company."

 

 

Lily felt so tired, but she had to stay awake. She found it hard to get comfortable for the longest time. She looked up at Jerome's dark figure. "How much longer?" she whispered.

"I think we are good to go."

"Really?"

"Yeah, come on." Jerome opened the locker door and stepped out. He helped Lily out and moved toward the door, he poked his head round the side and looked around. "We're good," he reached his hand back, "Stay close."

Lily took his hand and held onto it tightly. She was putting all her trust into the ginger.

Jerome pulled her into the next room and hugged the wall, motioning her to do so as well. He looked round the next corner and found it to be clear. Moving swiftly into the hallway, the vent was in sight. With one final check over his shoulder, he moved them both to it. He pulled the screwdriver from his pocket and undid the last three screws.

"I thought you had already done that?"

"Someone came round the corner, I couldn't." he muttered as he undid another screw and shoved it into his pocket. He stood on his tip toes and reached the top ones. Finally, he was able to pull the vent off. He turned to Lily, "I will give you a boost up, the climb in myself."

She moved closer to him and placed her right foot in his cupped hands.

Once he felt her hands on his shoulder, he lifted her foot up.

Lily grasped the edge of the vent and pulled the rest of her body inside with a small grunt. She moved deeper into it so Jerome had room to join her.

Jerome picked up the vent and tucked it between his legs. He pulled himself up into the vent, he was just about able to wriggle around and put the vent back on. After screwing it back in place, he turned to see Lily.

She had pulled the light from her pocket and held it in her mouth. She began to crawl. They both moved down the vents on all fours.

She muttered with the torch in her mouth.

"What?"

Lily took it out of her mouth, "We need to turn right." she repeated, then placed it back in her mouth.

After what felt like forever, there was light up ahead. Not much, but it was light.

Lily stopped and took the torch out of her mouth. "Do you have the screwdriver?"

Jerome fumbled around and pulled it from his pocket. He pushed it toward her.

She took it and undid the screws.

A small sound came from the metal and it dropped to the floor with a clang.

"You're not very good at being quiet are you?"

"No one comes down here." she dropped down from the vent and onto the floor, followed by Jerome. She stretched, "Man, it's good to be out of there."

"I was enjoying the view."

It took a moment for Lily to understand what he was saying. When it clicked, she gasped and turned to him, hitting him playfully.

Jerome giggled and pushed her away. "Where now?"

Lily looked around, then pointed to one of the doors, "This way."

The two continued down past the boilers. Now and again there were small sounds coming from them, making Lily jump. At one point she reached for Jerome's hand, he took hers and had been holding it ever since.

"Is that it?"

Lily stopped as she saw a window ahead of them. She sighed with relief. "Yes!" she rushed towards it and tried to push it open. "It's stuck!"

"Move out the way." Jerome moved her aside and tried to open it with a grunt. "It's not budging."

"Now what..."

Jerome noticed the disappointment in her voice. He looked around for something to pry it open with. He rummaged on the floor when he heard a loud crash and a shattering of glass. He spun around to see Lily stood in front of the window, it was now broken. "What the hell?" he asked harshly.

"I haven't come this far to stop now!" she had thrown a forgotten chair out of the window. "Come on, someone might have heard that." she took a step and began to climb out of it.

Jerome grabbed her arm and puled her back. "Wait."

"What?"

He picked up an old piece of pipe he had found and moved back to the window. He ran the pipe around the edge of the shattered frame to get rid of the last of the glass. "I don't want you bleeding to death." once he was happy with the bare frame, he dropped the pipe. "Ladies first."

Lily climbed out of the window again, followed by Jerome.

The two paused for a second. They both breathed in the fresh, cool air of the night. Neither of them had been in Arkham particularly long, but it felt like a lifetime.

Jerome was the first to snap out of it. He shook Lily. "We ain't safe yet doll."

She too snapped back to reality and turned to him. "Right, lets keep going."

They walked together and watched their surroundings like hawks. They were slowly moving under the bridge which connected Arkham to the main land. They stopped, looking into the water at their feet.

"Oh...I'd forgotten about this."

"Forgotten about the fact we are surround by water?" Jerome smirked.

"Shut up."

"Fancy a little swim?"

Lily looked at the ginger. "You can't be serious?"

"There is always the other option," he motioned back to the asylum.

"Jerome, we will freeze!"

"Then we gotta be fast."

Lily looked back at the asylum, then down at the water. She took a deep breath. "It's not that far." she said to herself. "Just a few meters." she took another deep breath. "Okay."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

"If it makes you feel any better, I'm not particularly happy about it either."

"Makes all the difference." she scoffed. "Ready?" she looked at Jerome.

He looked back at her, "Ready."

After a few more deep breaths, the pair began to walk into the water.

"Jesus fucking Christ!" Lily hissed.

"I second that!" Jerome gasped through gritted teeth. "Keep going doll."Jerome moved further into the water until it was just under his shoulders. He looked over at Lily who was by his side. He plunged his shoulders into the water and began to swim.

Lily followed him.

By the time the water was shallow enough to stand, neither of them could feel their feet.

Jerome was the first to stand, he immediately turned to Lily and helped her up. They were both shivering uncontrollably.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Stupid question ginger!" she snapped.

"Oh someone is feisty when they're cold."

She looked at him, her eyes like daggers. "Jerome!"

He laughed, still shivering. "We need to get somewhere warm."

Lily didn't disagree with this.


	7. Freedom

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: WARNING! This chapter has a sexual scene in it.

"Where does this friend of yours live?" Lily asked. She was still shivering. She had wrapped her arms around herself in an attempt to warm up a little.

"Just a few more blocks."

"A few more?" it has felt like they had been walking forever. Although in reality, it must have only been about an hour. Lily couldn't feel any part of her body. She didn't doubt Jerome was the same.

Finally, they came to a stop in an alleyway. There was a door on their right.

Jerome pulled her a little closer to him as he knocked on the door.

It opened a crack and a face appeared.

Jerome tilted his head to the same angle as the man had and smiled.

The man's eyes widened with a mixture of recognition and surprise. "You had better come in." his deep voice boomed. He opened the door wider and let the two enter. It was a little warmer than outside, but not by much. "Not the best time of year to practice your swimming, Jerome."

"You know me. I like to keep in shape."

The man looked at Lily.

"It's okay, she's with me."

"I can see that." the man said. "Straight outta Arkham eh?" he chuckled.

"S-something l-like that." Lily said through chattering teeth.

"You look frozen," he looked back to Jerome. "There is a room upstairs, second door on the left. Help yourself to any food you like. We will talk in the morning."

Jerome thanked him with a nod and took Lily's hand.

 

 

He lead her up the stairs and found the room. He opened the door and let Lily walk inside. He closed the door behind him and began to take his shoes off. "We need to get out of these wet clothes, I will run us a bath."

"Us?" she asked in shock. "I'm not getting naked in front of you, let alone sharing a bath!"

"Why not?"

"Because..." she blushed a looked at the floor.

"Because I'm a guy?" He walked towards her as he flung his wet shirt to the floor, "Doll, it's the quickest way for us to both get warm. Otherwise, we are going to get sick." he lifted her head so she looked at him. "Don't worry, I'm not gonna touch you." he smiled reassuringly, "Unless..."

She pushed him away playfully. "In your dreams!" she laughed.

He laughed as well and shrugged, "Ah, was worth a try."

"You're a cheeky one." she walked to the bathroom.

Jerome heard the sound of taps turning on and clothes dropping to the floor. He tried to move his mind away from the image of her undressing. A towel landed on the floor just outside of the bathroom door. He picked it up and after stripping from the last of his clothes, he wrapped it around his waist and walked into the bathroom.

Lily was sitting on the edge of the bath, a towel wrapped around her also. She swished her hand around in the water.

Jerome took a moment to admire her, the inmate's clothing at Arkham was hardly flattering. The towel wrapped around her, hugged her body, he could see her figure clearer than he could before. It had been a while since he had seen a feminine figure this close. He tried to hide the smile that had crept on his face, he had to control himself. He walked to the mirror and looked into it, he rubbed his hand over his chin and felt the stubble. He opened the mirrored cabinet and saw some shaving foam and a razor. He picked them up and shook the can. After flicking the tap on and letting it run for a while, he slipped the case off of the razor and covered it in water. He smoothed the shaving foam over his stubbed and began to glide the razor over it.

Lily turned the taps off and swished the water round a bit more. She glanced at Jerome. He seemed preoccupied with shaving and couldn't see her in the mirror, this made her a little more comfortable. She dropped the towel and placed one foot into the warm water. It caught her by surprise a little. It was a lot warmer than the showers at Arkham.

Jerome heard her step into the water and shiver a little. "I hope you've put nothing but warm water in there doll." he chuckled.

"It feels soooo good!" she sighed and lay back in the bathtub to wet her hair.

Jerome finished up shaving and washed the last of the foam off of his face. He checked in the mirror and once he was satisfied, he turned to face Lily and the bathtub, she was laying in it. He shuffled over. "Room for one more?"

"Nope." she teased with a smile. She was too warm to care if she was naked in front of him now.

Jerome reached back for the shaving foam and squirted a bit onto his hand. He turned back to the bathtub and pushed the foam onto her face.

Lily spluttered and rinsed off the foam with water and sat upright. "What the hell Jerome!" she saw his laughing face and couldn't stay angry. She cupped her hands and threw them up to him, sending warm water into his face.

His laughter stopped, his face changed into one of playful disbelief. "Oh, like that, is it?"

She stuck her tongue out at him, "Don't cover me in foam then!"

"I didn't cover you, I put it on your face," he shrugged, "I mean, if you want me to cover you in it..." he squirted her chest with the foam with a chuckle.

She jumped out of the tub and forced him to the ground. She managed to grab the can of cream off of him and shook it.

He looked up at her, "I dare you." He didn't think she would actually do it. He was proven wrong when he found his face covered in cream, followed by the sound of Lily's laughter. He wiped it off.

"I thought you would be used to some cream in the face, working in a circus and all."

"Yeah," he smirked, "But it's not my favourite cream."

"Favourite cream?" he watched his eyes move from her down to in-between her legs where she straddled him. Her face turned a deep red. She tried to move away.

Jerome grabbed her by wrapping an arm around the small of her back as he sat up, his other hand traced her jaw line. He pushed his face closer to hers.

Lily didn't quite know what came over her, but she found herself moving her face towards his also.

Their lips met softly at first, but once Lily had dropped the can and wrapped her arms around him, it had intensified.

Jerome pulled away and looked into her eyes.

She moved off of him and took his hands. She pulled him up and guided him to the bed in the next room. When she reached the bed, she turned around and sat him on the edge. She straddled him again and he obliged.

He placed his hands on her hips and began kissing her again. He moved one hand up to her breast and began to kneed it in his palm. Her moan vibrated against his lips.

She tangled one of her hands into his wet hair as the other tightened around his chest. She could feel he was still shaking a little from being cold. She retracted from the kiss and reached over for the blanket at the end of the bed, she opened it out as Jerome held her on his lap to help her balance. She placed it around him and partially around her. She looked into his eyes, then closed hers and resumed the kiss. She became lost in it.

Jerome's kisses became more heated and fierce. He grabbed her by her waist and threw her onto the bed by his side. He crawled on top of her, undoing the towel and discarding it to the floor. He rested a hand next to her head.

Lily watched his face, she felt his hand trace down her stomach and stop between her legs.

He raised an eyebrow. "Now I know that wetness isn't from the bathwater." He smirked at her blush.

Lily gasped and fluttered her eyes shut when she felt Jerome's fingers enter her. She let out a soothing moan when he wiggled them. She found her hand moving across Jerome's chest and down. His erect manhood brushed on her hand, she wrapped her hand around it and pumped a little, resulting in a low growl from him. She opened her eyes to see his closed, pleasure sweeping across his face. She wrapped her other arm around his neck and drew him downward to her.

He let her pull him down into a kiss and curled his fingers. He felt her hips buck upwards into his hand more, the corners of his mouth turned upwards and he increased his speed, as did she. He moans seeped into his ears when he nuzzled his face into her neck. He sucked and bit on her tender skin.

She felt his fingers move from her. A small whimper came from her when she felt him move from her hand.

Jerome placed his hand to the small of her back and lifted her up before sliding inside of her. He loved the sound that caused her to make, he moaned her name contentedly. "Mmm Lily, you feel so good."

"Jerome..." she began, cut off by another gasp, "You feel...oh god..."

Jerome pushed against her harder when he felt her pushing her body against his. His free hand had moved to her breast and was paying special attention to her pert nipples. He rolled it in his fingers, squeezing them between his forefinger and thumb.

Lily moved her head back and arched her back. His name escaped her lips. She had wrapped her legs around him and her arms around his back, one in his hair. She gripped it hard, making him hiss. She was so close to her orgasm. She clenched around him and squeezed her legs tighter around him.

Jerome felt this and thrust faster and harder, he wasn't far off himself. He watched her face when she shut her eyes tight and opened her mouth to allow the gasps of orgasm escape.

"Je...ro..me..."

He joined her and felt himself pushed over the edge by this sight. He exploded inside of her, filling her.. He continued to thrust until he couldn't take any more. He pulled out of her and rolled onto the bed beside her.

They both took some time to catch their breath and waited for the stars to clear from their vision.

Jerome turned his head to Lily with a smile, "Looks like we didn't need a warm bath after all."

She joined his chuckle and looked at him. "I'm a lot warmer now."

He nodded in agreement, "Why I didn't think of this before, I have no idea."

"Yeah, strange for a man not to think about what's in his trousers."

Jerome fake gasped. "I am a gentleman, young lady!"

She scoffed, "No you're not."

Jerome opened his mouth, then changed his mind. "Yeah, you're right." He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her closer, "But I can try to be one for you."

She moved into him and looked up at the ceiling, "The lady and the gentleman on the run...nah, I like the sound of Lady and the tramp better." she felt Jerome's chest moved as he laughed.

"I've never been called a Lady before."

"Oi!" she playfully hit him.

His laugh died down, "We should try to get some sleep, we have a lot to sort tomorrow."


End file.
